


Getting There

by sweetcarolanne



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Ending, Established Relationship, Explicit Language, Hopeful Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Light Angst, Love/Hate, M/M, Snark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-07
Updated: 2014-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-20 06:18:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2418128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetcarolanne/pseuds/sweetcarolanne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Love between Severus and Sirius could be hard work at times, but slowly, they were getting there...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Getting There

**Author's Note:**

  * For [metabaron](https://archiveofourown.org/users/metabaron/gifts).



> Written for metabaron for the Trick or Treat Challenge 2014. I hope this was something like what you wanted, dear recipient, and that the two men aren't too OOC in this fic! Many thanks to my beta who wishes to be anonymous.
> 
> I suppose, in its quirky way, this story is a "treat"...

Sometimes, each member of the unlikely pair took turns wondering why on earth he had fallen for the other. Occasionally, such feelings simultaneously arose.

It was not easy, not at all, loving someone who used to be an enemy. And when one enemy had been a bully and the other his victim, the deep childhood wounds beneath the surface sometimes threatened to destroy the burgeoning affection. At best, making love grow was a challenge, and at worst, damnably frustrating. Even with all the scorching sex, communication could at times become very strained. But the relationship was a discipline that kept these two very different men focused, and at times one or both of them seemed to relish their constant struggles.

Today, however, was not one of those days.

"I'm not doing it, Sevvy, There's no fucking way in hell."

Sirius Black sat sprawling on the elaborate, old-fashioned chaise longue with its ridiculous purple velvet upholstery and dragon claw legs of tarnished brass, glaring up at the man he sometimes loved and sometimes hated with a white-hot passion. At that very moment, his feelings were veering towards completely despising Severus Snape, who was giving him a look that was as cold as Sirius' stare was heated. Severus intensely disliked Sirius using that particular diminutive with him, which Sirius knew full well, but at the moment he did not really care at all. What Severus was suggesting was not such a big thing, really. Under other circumstances Sirius might even have found it very funny. But with everything else that was going on, and with all the pressure Sirius was under, he felt insulted and had reached breaking point.

When Severus finally spoke, his tone was chilly beyond measure. "It's only logical, Black. You spend so much time in your other form for safety's sake that you're bound to encounter some of the everyday hazards of life as a canine. I merely prepared this potion to help you. You should be more grateful that I'm willing to use my more than considerable skills to assist you!" He brandished the bottle with the repulsive-looking green liquid inside right in Black's face, and the other man flinched, his expression now closely resembling the snarling dog he could become when transformed.

"I do not have bloody fleas!" the Animagus snapped, leaping to his feet with fists clenched, startling Snape who quickly stood back, laying the bottle upon a nearby table. Sirius, in turn, disliked being called by his surname by this man who was supposed to be in love with him. He felt like storming out of the room there and then, but Severus stepped forward again and laid a hand lightly, almost tenderly, on his shoulder. It actually made Sirius stop in his tracks, and his breathing eased a little. Such affectionate gestures, outside of the bedroom, were rarely bestowed by Severus and this one got Sirius' attention immediately.

"Sirius, all dogs - and even some humans - are prone to fleas. It's no shame to have them and they are very easy to get rid of. I'm more than willing to listen to _your_ suggestions, even if some of them _are_ foolish. After all, I started using that vile shampoo when you insisted I do so." Snape's voice softened a little. "But that's not what's really bothering you, is it?"

"No," Sirius finally admitted, his voice something between a low growl and a strangled sob. "I shouldn't take it out on you, Sevvy. Sorry, I mean Severus." He sighed deeply. "I just hate having to lie and hide like this, and having Harry think I'm dead - all he's been through, it must be killing him! He's just a kid!"

"I don't like it any more than you do," Severus said, the hand on the other man's shoulder a little firmer in its grasp now, a little more reassuring. "I once cared very deeply for his mother. But it was what Dumbledore ordered. You were supposed to be his happy ending, his release from that miserable life he leads with those Muggles. Losing that will push him over the edge, make him even more determined to battle the evil that took everything from him. Some day, you'll be able to see the boy again and tell him the reason why it had to be like this, but we have to do as Dumbledore has told us, including keeping your being alive a secret, in order to defeat the Dark Lord. There are many more dangers coming, and we have to be ready to face them. And we have more chance of doing so if we stop these ridiculous quarrels and stick together, Sirius! We're both on the same side, damn it, and I happen to love you - that's why I made you the blasted flea potion in the first place!"

Severus was breathing hard now, and he felt like he was babbling, but his words seemed to calm Sirius down. "Yeah, we both owe Dumbledore everything,'" Sirius said. "If it weren't for him, I'd be dead for real by now, and probably, so would you."

As Severus nodded silently, a slightly more hopeful look came into the eyes of Sirius. That last sentence of Snape's had really captured his attention. An open admission of love from Severus Snape - that was an even rarer occurrence than the touch of his hand.

"Did you mean that? When you said you love me, I mean?" Sirius asked softly. Now it was Snape's turn to sigh as he looked slightly embarrassed, but nodded anyway.

"Of course I do! Even though you have fleas and are constantly calling me a "greasy git."

"I still don't have fleas - and I guess I love you too. You're _my_ greasy git, after all." Sirius was about to move away when Severus pulled him closer and actually kissed him passionately on the lips.

Yes, communication was sometimes hard and painful, but these unlikely lovers were slowly getting there.


End file.
